Michigan

Anibal Sanchez will start for the Detroit Tigers in the first game following the All-Star break. That very likely means he will not be a late addition to the American League All-Star roster.
(AP File Photo)

DETROIT -- Jim Leyland announced Sunday morning how his rotation will line up following the All-Star break.

Could his rotation be a clue to his plans regarding the All-Star Game?

First, the rotation. Anibal Sanchez will pitch Friday night against the Kansas City Royals in the first game of a three-game series in Kansas City, the first game for the Tigers following the All-Star break. Justin Verlander and Doug Fister will pitch Saturday and Sunday, followed by Max Scherzer and Rick Porcello in the first two games of a three-game series against the White Sox in Chicago.

Regarding the All-Star Game, Leyland said Sunday morning that he had three roster changes involving the American League team that will be announced later today, including two that involved games on the West Coast. Those three moves are certain to involve starting pitchers since starting pitchers who pitch Sunday can be replaced with others for the All-Star Game two days later.

That very likely means Bartolo Colon of the Oakland A's and Hisashi Iwakuma of the Seattle Mariners, who both pitch today on the West Coast, will be replaced on the All-Star team. If that's true, it's likely either James Shields of the Kansas City Royals or Verlander, who both pitch today, will be replaced as well. That would account for the one eastern time zone move Leyland to which Leyland referred.

It's difficult to tell whether the move will involve Verlander or Shields. Verlander pitches this afternoon and is scheduled to pitch again Saturday, which gives him one extra day between starts. It's conceivable that he could pitch an inning in the All-Star Game on Tuesday and still pitch Saturday. But the fact that he is near the front end of the rotation coming out of the break could mean he won't pitch Tuesday for the American League.

How does all this affect Sanchez? Well, it is likely that Leyland has given strong consideration to adding Sanchez (7-6, 2.93 ERA) to the All-Star roster, especially since he has three spots to fill. But it seems very unlikely that Leyland would announce his second-half rotation Sunday morning with Sanchez pitching for the Tigers on Friday and then later in the day add Sanchez to the All-Star roster, which would likely lead to Leyland redoing the entire rotation.

So, to sum things up, don't expect Sanchez to be added to the AL All-Star roster.

As for Verlander's status, well, it's probably best to just wait and see.